Metallurgical furnace.



No. 737,519. PATENTED AUG. 25, 1903. s. SLTEW'ART & H. HUGHES. METALLURGICAL. FURNACE.

- l APPILIOATIOK FILED MAR. 10. 1908.

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APPLICATION FILED MAR. 10. 1903.

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. No. 737,519. PATENTBD AUG. 25, 1903.

IS. STEWART (Sn-H. HUGHES. METALLURGICAL FURNACE.

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lllllllll In" l awe cowl UNITED STATES Patented August 25, 1903.

PATENT O FICE;

SAMUEL STEWART, OF BRIGHTON, AND HARRY HUGHES, OF VVOODVVARD, ALABAMA.

METALLURGICAL FURNACE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 737,519, dated August 25, 1903. Application filed March 10, 1903. Serial No. 147,124. (No model.)

To aZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, SAMUEL STEWART, re-

United States, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Metallurgical Furnaces; and we do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

Our invention relates to improvements i metallurgical furnaces; and it consistsin providing suitable means for feeding the stock to the furnace and also in providing a readilyremovable gas-seal which may be quickly and conveniently operated.

Our invention will be understood by reference to the accompanying drawings, in which the same parts are represented by the same letters throughout the several views.

Figure 1 is a side elevation showing the top' of the furnace, the pipe connections being omitted. Fig. 1 is a detail showing the upper ends of the tracks with the angle-irons for supporting the same, parts being broken away. Fig. 2 is a detail, partly in section, showing one of the sliding gates which constitute the gas-seal. This figure is on an enlarged scale. Fig. 3 is a diagram showing the gates which constitute the gas-seal, the cyl inders for operating the same, and the valve and pipes for supplying fluid-pressure to the said cylinders; and Fig. & shows the top of the furnace lifted off.

A represents the body of the furnace, having the top A and the hopper A Above the furnace we provide a suitable framework 13, one side of which is inclined, as at B, and carries the angle-irons 12 for the track 1'). These an gle-irons terminate at the base of the curves 1) of the tracks.

G represents a car carrying the stock, which car is provided with front wheels 0 and hind wheels 0, and near its rear end, as at c is attached a wire rope D, which rope passes over the idlers E, E, and E and leads down to any suitable winch or any hoisting apparatus. (Not shown.) The loaded caris dragged up the track 7) until the front wheels 0 pass over the curve Z) and the front end of the car falls down and its contents are dumped in the hopper A as indicated in Fig. 1.

The gas-seal is composed of a plurality of gates F, whose ends are tapered, as at f, (see Fig. 3,) which gates are connected to the piston-rods G of the cylinders 11,11, H and H respectively. The gates are cut away at their extreme ends to form a circular opening for the rod Q, which supports the bell P.

I represents a supply-pipe for steam or other fiuid-pressure and I, represents the exhaust, which supply and exhaust pipes and the valve K are controlled by the handle 76. This valve is shown in the patent to Samuel Stewart, No. 652,198, granted June 19, 1900, and will not be furthendescribed herein.

Steam or other fluid-pressure is admitted to one end of the cylinders by means of the pipes L L L At that time the exhaust is opened to the other end of the cylinders through the pipes M, M", and M and vice versa. Thus it will be seen that by turning the handle in one direction the gates 'F will be raised and the bottom of the hopper will be opened, while if the valve be turned in the other direction the gates will be lowered and the bottom of thehopper closed. These gates travel between suitable guides, such as a and a, (see Fig; 2,) andthe gate projects beyond the annular edge a 'when in. theiclosedp'osition and is drawn clear of the same when in the open position.

The bell P is raised or lowered by means of the rod Q and the lever U, the said lever having a weight WVsuspended, as by the rod WV, from its opposite arm and being operated by the rod V and piston-rod V in the cylin der V in the well-known way. It will be seen that if the bell be in the closed position, as indicated in dotted lines in Fig. 1, and the gates be in the closed position, as shown in Fig. 3, the stock may be fed into the hopper. Then the gates may be withdrawn, allowing the stock to fall on top of the bell, and on closing the gates again and loweringthe bell the stock will fall into the top of the furnace. At the same time the top of the furnace will be substantially gas-tight.

In order to lift the bell and parts above the same for the purpose of substitution of parts or repairs, we provide the apparatus shown in Fig. 4, in which 'two cylinders T (one only is shown) on opposite sides of the beam or lever U, to whose piston-rods T the ropes R are attached. These ropes pass over the pulleys S and S and are secured to the eyes q on the rod Q. The bell-lip ring A cone A, and hopper A are thus all lifted together andmay be carried off on a truck X, traveling on tracks Y.

It will be obvious that various modifications might be made in the herein-described apparatus which could be used without departing from the spirit of our invention.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is-

1. In a metallurgical furnace provided with a hopper at the upper end thereof, the combination with a frame mounted above said furnace, of an inclined track having a curved end carried by said frame, a car provided with four wheels traveling on said track, and a hoisting rope or chain secured to the rear end of said car adapted to allow the front end of the car to swing down when it passes over thecurved end of the track, substantially as described.

2. In a metallurgical furnace provided with ahopper at the upper end thereof, the combination with a frame mounted above said furnace, of an inclined track having a curved end carried by said frame, a car provided with four wheels traveling on said track, a hoisting rope or chain secured to the rear end of said car adapted to allow the front end of the car to swing down when it passes over the curved end of the track, a bell normally closing the top of said furnace, and sliding gates constituting a gas-seal mounted above said bell, with means for operating said gates, substantially as described.

3. In a metallurgical furnace provided with a hopper at the upper end thereof, the combination with a frame mounted above said furnace, of an inclined track having a curved end carried by said frame, a car provided with four wheels traveling on said track, a hoisting rope or chain secured to the rear end of said caradapted to allow the front end of the car to swing down when it passes over the curved end of the track, a bell normally closing the top of said furnace, and sliding gates constituting a gas-seal mounted above said bell, a cylinder for each gate, piston-rods and pistons for operating said gates, and a valve and pipes for simultaneously admitting fluidpressure to all of said cylinders, substantially as described.

4. A gas-seal for metallurgical furnaces, consisting of a plurality of sliding gates tapered at the ends to fit snugly together when in the closed position, with means for moving said gates, substantially as described.

5. A gas-seal for metallurgical furnaces, consisting of a plurality of sliding gates tapered at the ends to fit snugly together when in the closed position, piston-rods connected to said gates, cylinders for operating said piston-rods, and a valve and pipes forsimultaneously admitting fluid-pressure to all of said cylinders, substantially as described.

6. In a metallurgical furnace, the combination with a hopper and inclined guides at the base of said hopper, a'plurality of sliding gates traveling in said guides, said gates having their ends cut away to fit snugly together when in the closed position, and means for simultaneously opening or closing said gates, substantially as and for the purposes described.

'7. In a metallurgical furnace, the combination with a hopper and inclined guides at the base of said hopper, aplurality of sliding gates traveling in said guides, said gates having their ends cut away to fit snugly together when in the closed position, piston-rods connected to said gates, cylinders for operating said piston-rods, and a valve andpipes for simultaneously admitting fluid-pressure to said cylinders, substantially as and for the purposes described.

8. A gas-seal for metallurgical furnaces, consisting of a plurality of downwardly-inclined sliding gates tapered at the ends so as to fit snugly together when in the closed position, with means for moving said gates, substantially as described.

9. In a metallurgical furnace provided with a hopper at the upper end thereof, the combination with a frame mounted above said furnace, of an inclined track carried by said frame, a car traveling on said track, a hoisting rope or chain secured to said car, means for automatically dumping said car, a bell normally closing the top of said furnace, and downwardly -inclined gates constituting a gas-seal mounted above said bell, with means for operating said gates, substantially as described.

10. In a metallurgical furnace provided with a hopper at the upper end thereof, the combination with a frame mounted above said furnace, of an inclined track, a car traveling on said track, a hoisting rope or chain secured to said car, means for automatically dumping said car, a bell normally closing the top of said furnace, and inclined sliding gates constituting a gas-seal mounted above said bell, piston-rods and pistons for operating said gates, and a valve and pipes for simultaneously admitting fluid-pressure to all of said cylinders, substantially as described.

11. The combination with a furnace, provided with a hopper, of a bell, a rod attached to said bell, a rope or chain attached at one end of said rod, a piston-rod attached to the other end of said rope or chain, adapted to raise and lower said bell, with acylinder, a piston, and a source of fluid-pressure for operating said piston-rod, a plurality of sliding gates adapted to close the bottom of said hop- IIO per, said gates being cut away at their ends so as to fit snugly together and to leave a passage-way for said rod when in the closed posiiion, with means for reciprocating said gates, substantially as described.

12. The combination with a furnace, provided with a hopper, of a bell, a rod attached to said bell, a rope or chain attached at one end of said rod, a piston-rod attached to the other end of said rope or chain, adapted to raise and lower said bell, with a cylinder, a

. piston, and a source of fluid-pressure for opcrating said piston-rod, a plurality of downwardly-inclined sliding gates adapted to close the bottom of said hopper, said gates being cut away to fit snugly together when in the closed position, also to permit the passage therethrough of the said rod from the bell, with means for reciprocating said gates, substantially as described.

13. The combination with a furnace, provided with a hopper, of a bell, a rod attached to said bell, a rope or chain attached at one end of said rod, a piston-rod attached to the other end of said rope or chain, adapted to raise and lower said bell, with a cylinder, a piston, and a source of fluid-pressure for operating said piston-rod, a plurality of downwardly-inclined sliding gates adapted to close the bottom of said hopper, said gates being cut away to fit snugly together when in the closed position, also to permit the passage therethrough of the said rod from the bell, piston-rods connected to said gates, cylinders and pistons for operating said piston-rods, and a valve and pipes for simultaneously applying fluid-pressure to said cylinders, substantially as described.

14. In a metallurgical furnace, the combination with a cone and a hopper supported thereby, of a lip-ring at the base of said cone, abell engaging said lip-ring, and power mechanism for lifting said bell and with it said lipring, cone and hopper, substantially as and for the purposes described.

15. In a metallurgical furnace, the combination with a cone and a hopper supported thereby, of a lip-rin g at the base of said cone, a bell engaging said lip-ring, a rod connected to said bell, a rope or ropes connected to said rod,and pistons working in cylinders for hauling on said rope or ropes, substantially as described.

16. In a metallurgical furnace, the combination with a hopper and its supports, of a bell engaging said supports, a rod connected to said bell, a frame mounted above the furnace, pulleys mounted on said frame, a rope connected to said rod passing-over said pulleys and secured to said rod, and a piston and cylinder for hauling on the other end of said rope, substantially as and for the purposes described.

SAMUEL STEWART. HARRY HUGHES.

Witnesses:

W. Q. J AMISON, S. HINE. 

